July 2, 2020: U.S. Department of Labor Publishes Frequently Asked Questions and Answers To Help Keep Workers Safe During the Coronavirus Pandemic
WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has published frequently asked questions and answers to help protect workers from exposure to the coronavirus. Click here to download
- OSHA’s new Guidance on Returning to Work assists businesses reopening and employees returning to work.
- OSHA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued interim guidance to protect workers in the seafood processing industry.
From OSHA new guidance on returning to work — click here.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued Guidance on Returning to Work to assist employers reopening non-essential businesses and their employees returning to work during the evolving coronavirus pandemic. The guidance supplements the U.S. Department of Labor’s and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ previously developed Guidance on Preparing Workplaces for COVID-19 and the White House’s Guidelines for Opening Up America Again. The guidelines provide general principles for updating restrictions originally put in place to slow the spread of the coronavirus. During each phase of the reopening process, employers should continue to focus on strategies for basic hygiene, social distancing, identification and isolation of sick employees, workplace controls and flexibilities, and employee training.
Dental Covid Protocol Publication and Respirator Video:
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently issued new COVID-19 Guidance for Dental Practitioners (also available in Spanish) and a New Respirator Video (also available in Spanish) illustrating steps for safely putting on/taking off a respirator.
April 27, 2020 OSHA COVID-19 Quicktakes Resources:
- Pandemic Preparedness: Detailed guidance on how employers should prepare themselves and their workers is available in English, Spanish, and now as an eBook.
- Preventing Exposure: The latest OSHA Alerts provide recommended practices to help prevent exposure in construction, retail sales, package delivery, and manufacturing.
- Risk Assessment: OSHA’s occupational exposure risk pyramid shows what measures to take to protect workers based on their industry and contact with others.
- Quick Tip Videos: A series of brief videos provides quick tips on subjects such as handwashing, disinfecting workplaces, social distancing, and industry risk factors.
- Tip of the Day: Subscribe to receive daily tips with links to resources on protecting workers.
Download COVID-19 Resources: April 21, 2020
Recent guidance released and housed on this page includes:
- U.S. Department of Labor Issues Enforcement Guidance For Recording Cases of COVID-19
o COVID-19 Guidance for the Construction Workforce (in Spanish). (April 21, 2020)
o COVID-19 Guidance for the Manufacturing Industry Workforce (in Spanish). (April 16, 2020)
o COVID-19 Guidance for the Package Delivery Workforce (in Spanish)
o COVID-19 Guidance for Retail Workers (in Spanish)
- Prevent Worker Exposure to Coronavirus (in Spanish)
- Worker Exposure Risk to COVID-19 (in Spanish)
- Temporary Guidance on the enforcement of OSHA’s Respiratory Protection standard:
o April 16 Memo: Discretion in Enforcement when Considering an Employer’s Good Faith Efforts During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic
o April 13 Memo: Interim Enforcement Response Plan for Coronavirus Disease 2019 for handling COVID-19-related complaints, referrals, and severe illness reports
o April 10 Memo: Enforcement Guidance for Recording Cases of Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic
o April 8 Memo: Expanded Temporary Enforcement Guidance on Repiratory Protection Fit-Tesing for N95 Filtering Facepieces in All Industries During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic
o April 3 Memo: on Respiratory Protection Equipment Certified Under Standards of Other Countries or Jurisdictions During the COVID-19 Pandemic
o April 3 Memo: on Respiratory Protection and the N95 Shortage Due to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic
o March 14 Memo: on Healthcare Respiratory Protection Annual Fit-Testing for N95 Filtering Facepieces During the COVID-19 Outbreak
- NEW Short video: Higher Risk Jobs Need Extra Protections to Keep Workers Safe
- NEW Poster: Steps All Workplaces Can Take to Reduce the Risk of Exposure to Coronavirus (Spanish)
- Visit OSHA’s Publications webpage for other useful workplace safety information.
The Wage and Hour Division’s (WHD) primary resource is the WHD COVID-19 Official Webpage
- Departmental national dialogue on the implementation of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) The ideas and comments gathered from this dialogue will inform compliance assistance guidance, resources, and tools, as well as outreach approaches, that assist employers and employees in understanding their responsibilities and rights under the FFCRA. The dialogue will remain open until the close of business on April 10.
CDC Guidance for Cleaning and Disinfecting Public Spaces, Workplaces, Businesses, Schools, and Homes
This guidance is intended for all Americans, whether you own a business, run a school, or want to ensure the cleanliness and safety of your home. Reopening America requires all of us to move forward together by practicing social distancing and other daily habits to reduce our risk of exposure to the virus that causes COVID-19.
CDC’s primary resource is the CDC COVID-19 Official Web Page. This page is being updated routinely and we encourage you to review it frequently. Recent guidance released and housed on this page includes:
o Decontamination and Reuse of Filtering Facepiece Respirators using Contingency and Crisis Capacity Strategies (Healthcare)
o Strategies for Optimizing of N95 Respirators (Healthcare)
o Interim Guidance for Businesses and Employers
o Cleaning and Disinfecting Building Facility
The World Health Organization’s (WHO) primary resource is the WHO COVID-19 Webpage.